Ex Liverpool star will pay out of work staff from local golf club

Glen Johnson and his fellow golf members are doing their bit for their local golf club due to COVID-19...

Thu, 2 Apr 2020

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Former Liverpool and England defender Glen Johnson has revealed he is going to club money together with his mates at his local golf club to keep members of staff fully employed as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Johnson, speaking to Jim White and Natalie Sawyer on talkSPORT on Thursday afternoon, explained he was prepared to do this act of kindness simply because his experience at the golf club would not be the same without these particular members of staff.

"The night Boris [Johnson] did his speech and obviously mentioned the lockdown, we were sat in the golf club and we had just had a round of golf," said Johnson, who made 160 appearances for Liverpool and 54 for England.

"We were waiting for this speech and what information was going to come out. We were just sitting there, not a care in the world really in the sense we were just having a bottle of wine, and another bottle of wine, and a nice lunch.

"All the staff have obviously gone into their little back room to listen to the speech, and they've all come out back crying their eyes out because they obviously rely on this job, and like most people, they work month to month.

"So they've all come back out crying, and we're like 'look don't worry about it'. We sat them down with us and they joined us at the table, and we just said 'this place is only so good because of you guys being here and what you do for us.

"So us eight to 10 agreed there and then that whatever the shortfall was we were going to cough up and find enough money to keep them fully employed whether the golf club shuts from six or eight months, or whatever it's going to be.

"We're going to do it under the rules of the golf club, so we're not going behind anyone's backs. We're going to work with the golf club and find out what the shortfall is and then whatever members want to get involved will cover the gap.

"As I say, we wouldn't love it so much [at the golf club] if it wasn't for them."